Top 6 Cooldown Manager Addons Compared (Plus a New Challenger) | WoW UI Guide

I tested the top 6 World of Warcraft cooldown manager addons — plus a new challenger — so you don’t have to. This video compares Cooldown Manager Centered, NephUI, Better Cooldown Manager, TweaksUI, Action Bars Enhanced, asCombatInfo, and TavernUI, breaking down customization, layout control, performance, and real gameplay use. 👉 Patreon:   / oakensoul   👉 Ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/oakensoul 💬 Comment your class & spec — I’m curious which cooldown managers work best for each. 00:00 – The Problem with Blizzard’s Cooldown Manager 01:17 – Cooldown Manager Centered (Overview & Pros) 03:27 – NephUI Cooldown Manager (Standalone Breakdown) 06:55 – Better Cooldown Manager (Advanced Features) 09:39 – TweaksUI: Cooldowns (Flexible but Complex) 13:56 – Action Bars Enhanced (Deep Customization) 18:39 – asCombatInfo & asPowerBar (Lightweight Option) 20:49 – A New Challenger Appears: TavernUI (Beta) 24:18 – Which Cooldown Manager Should You Choose? 24:32 – Final Thoughts & Recommendations If you’re using World of Warcraft’s modern UI, you already know the problem: the default Blizzard cooldown manager feels half-finished. It tracks major abilities… but that’s about it. No proper skinning. Rigid spacing. Limited filtering. No real layout control. So I tested every major cooldown manager addon on CurseForge — so you don’t have to. In this video, I break down the top 6 cooldown manager addons (by downloads), compare their strengths and weaknesses, and show them in real gameplay. I also cover one new addon currently in development that you’ll absolutely want to keep an eye on. Whether you want something lightweight, deeply customizable, or visually clean and centered, this video will help you pick the right cooldown manager for your UI. If this saves you an hour of testing, consider hitting 👍 And let me know in the comments which one you’re running. 🧩 Addons Covered 🔹 Cooldown Manager Centered Developed by WilduTools — 478k+ downloads https://www.curseforge.com/wow/addons...   / discord   Center-out growth (essential, utility, buffs) Assisted Highlight support Square icons, font & color control Excellent edit-mode visual helpers Lightweight and focused 🔹 NephUI – Cooldown Manager (Standalone) Developed by Nephuhlim — 198k+ UI downloads / 27k+ standalone https://www.curseforge.com/wow/addons... Customizes Blizzard’s cooldown manager Includes mana & class resource bars Cast bar support Clean, integrated layout Modular — no forced unit frames or action bars 🔹 Better Cooldown Manager Developed by UnhaltedGB — 161k+ downloads https://www.curseforge.com/wow/addons...   / discord   Pixel-perfect borders & textures Power & secondary power bars (width-matching) Custom spell, item, and trinket bars Cast bar support Advanced anchoring & API support 🔹 TweaksUI: Cooldowns Developed by Meltheran — 114k+ downloads https://www.curseforge.com/wow/addons... Highly flexible layout system Center-growth buffs & cooldowns Visibility rules (combat, target, mouseover, instance) Custom trackers for spells & items Masque & Edit Mode support (Powerful, but requires careful setup) 🔹 Action Bars Enhanced Developed by Hndrxuprt (Hendrix-upert) — 21k+ downloads https://www.curseforge.com/wow/addons...   / discord   Presets for fast setup Deep animation & proc glow control Skinned Blizzard action bars Advanced buff bar coloring Cast bars (player, target, boss) Extremely customizable visuals 🔹 asCombatInfo & asPowerBar Developed by asMOD_kr — 19k+ downloads https://www.curseforge.com/wow/addons... Very lightweight Basic cooldown & resource tracking Minimal configuration Limited real-time feedback (Simple, but constrained) 🆕 A New Challenger: TavernUI (Beta) Co-Developed by Mondo & LiQuiDgg https://www.curseforge.com/wow/addons...   / discord   Early active development Modular & performance-focused Cooldown manager + resource bars oUF unit frame support Inspired by Quazii UI features One-click FPS optimization Auto-loot, auto-sell, auto-repair Huge potential as it matures 💙 Support the Channel If you enjoy this kind of in-depth UI testing and breakdowns: 👉 Patreon:   / oakensoul   👉 Ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/oakensoul Your support directly helps me keep testing addons, building UIs, and making guides like this.